The Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts (PFFM) are backing two new pieces of legislation to combat the Commonwealth’s ongoing fire fighter staffing crisis.
The bills aim to bring fire department staffing across Massachusetts in line with NFPA standards and ensure communities have the personnel needed to respond during emergencies. The push follows a series of tragic and high-risk incidents that exposed dangerous staffing shortages across the Commonwealth.
Last July, 10 civilians died in a fire at an assisted living facility in Fall River. The department, which had been staffed well below NFPA standards for years, was forced to rely on off-duty fire fighters to help rescue dozens of residents trapped inside. More than 30 people were injured, including six fire fighters.
The staffing issues in Fall River aren’t just a Fall River problem. They’re in places all over Massachusetts and beyond. City managers, people making budgetary decisions, have to prioritize staffing to protect their population.
General President Edward Kelly
IAFF leadership – including General President Edward Kelly and 3rd District Vice President Jay Colbert – joined PFFM leaders on scene within hours of the fire. The IAFF and PFFM worked with Fall River, MA Local 1314 to secure additional staffing and resources following the tragedy. But the incident raised a broader question: how many other communities are facing the same staffing shortages?
To find out, the PFFM surveyed affiliates across the state last fall, asking how many fire fighters are staffed per apparatus during emergency responses. Over 90% of Locals responded – and the results were alarming: only three municipalities in Massachusetts met NFPA staffing standards.
“The staffing issues in Fall River aren’t just a Fall River problem. They’re in places all over Massachusetts and beyond,” Kelly said. “City managers, people making budgetary decisions, have to prioritize staffing to protect their population.
“That’s a tough lesson coming out of this,” he said at a press conference where Fall River leaders announced an increase in fire fighter staffing.
To address the statewide crisis, Sen. Michael Brady has introduced SD 3787 in partnership with the PFFM. The bill would establish a Fire Fighter Staffing Grant Program – similar to the federal SAFER program – to help communities hire, train, and retain enough fire fighters to meet safe staffing levels. It would also create a statewide body to track staffing levels and help ensure departments maintain adequate coverage.
Highlighting the staffing shortages across Massachusetts is important but talk alone doesn’t save lives – real change in law and policy does. That’s exactly what PFFM leaders are fighting for – meaningful reforms that will help prevent tragedies like the Fall River incident from happening again.
3rd District Vice President Jay Colbert
“Highlighting the staffing shortages across Massachusetts is important but talk alone doesn’t save lives – real change in law and policy does,” said Colbert. “That’s exactly what PFFM leaders are fighting for – meaningful reforms that will help prevent tragedies like the Fall River incident from happening again.”
A second bill focuses on the unique risks facing college communities.
Last November, a major fire in Amherst tore through a building under construction before spreading to a nearby apartment complex, displacing more than 200 people – most of them students. With other crews already committed to calls, a single engine company was left to manage the fast-moving fire with limited resources.
“The only reason we didn’t see a tragedy is because those residents, mostly able-bodied college students, were able to self-evacuate,” Amherst Fire Fighters Local 1764 President Sarah Forsaith told the IAFF after the incident.
Massachusetts is home to more than 100 colleges and universities, many with on-campus housing and dense student populations. Fire fighters say the Amherst incident underscored the need for staffing levels that reflect those risks.
The PFFM’s mission is to protect the public, but we can’t do that without the resources to do our job safely and effectively. The time to act is now – before another preventable tragedy occurs.
PFFM President Richard MacKinnon
Filed by Rep. Priscila Souza, HD 6020 would help ensure departments in college communities are staffed to meet nationally recognized standards and can respond effectively to large-scale emergencies.
“The reality is, it shouldn’t take a loss of life to drive change, but if we don’t act, it will happen again,” said PFFM President Richard MacKinnon. “We’re grateful to our partners on Beacon Hill for stepping up and filing these critical staffing bills.”
The Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts worked closely with lawmakers to develop both bills, drawing on the real-world experiences of fire fighters on the front lines. They’ll look to turn the bills into law in the upcoming legislative session.
“The PFFM’s mission is to protect the public, but we can’t do that without the resources to do our job safely and effectively,” MacKinnon added. “The time to act is now – before another preventable tragedy occurs.”
